Hugo Lloris and Mauricio Pochettino both spoke about bouncing back from the defeat at Liverpool when Spurs face Gent in the Europa League on Thursday, while the Tottenham Hotspur boss addressed those rumours linking him with Barcelona.

The La Liga giants' 4-0 humiliation against PSG increased the pressure on Barca boss Luis Enrique and former Espanyol boss Pochettino has been heavily linked with a return to Spain to take on the Catalan side.

The Argentine spoke about that in his pre-match press conference in Genk's Ghelamco Arena as well as the 'not an easy project' he faces at Spurs.

Lloris was also asked about how the Spurs players dealt with the 2-0 defeat at Anfield at the weekend.

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Here are the key answers from the press conference, starting with Pochettino:

Barcelona link?

It's important to be focused on the game tomorrow. Yesterday [the Barcelona result] was a good lesson for all because, if you are not ready to fight at that level, when you compete with the top five or six in the Premier League, the Europa League or Champions League, it's a very similar level.

"The first thing you need to show on the pitch is that you are ready to fight and compete. But the question is about being focused tomorrow. I can't say anything about that [Barcelona]. I'm at Tottenham. I am very happy, four more years of contract, enjoying an exciting project. It's true it's not an easy project, but I'm very happy here.

Why is it not easy?

One example was, I hear that it's not so good, our record, away from home against the top five. But that is wrong. Because if you look at history, and compare it with the last six seasons, you can maybe see that the last two years we've improved a lot competing against the top five or six in the Premier League.

You cannot change that mentality, that problem, in one and a half years. That is a process to change. Maybe I will have time to improve that and change it. Maybe not. That is football. It's about winning.

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That is the hardest job to change. Sometimes it's not about quality or about tactics or philosophy. It's about one aspect that you need time for. You need time to build that winning mentality. It's not only about the 25 players and the staff. It's the whole club.

That makes it the hardest job. It's not hard for me to take training, and assign an exercise, choose the tactics or team, whether we play three or the back or not. That's easy. The hardest part is going to Liverpool and Old Trafford playing your way and behave the way you would in front of your own fans at White Hart Lane. That is a tough job."

Injury news, who's out?

"Lamela, Rose and Vertonghen. Today is the last training session. I will decide tomorrow or after that training session the starting XI. But I think they're in good condition. What happened against Liverpool, all the players want the chance to play again and try and change the feeling. But we'll see. Maybe we will make some changes, but not too many."

Did he 'kill' the players in training after Anfield?

No, I tried to give love. We all felt disappointed that they suffered a lot. Sometimes, when your performance is not good and that game touched your pride, you don't need to kill them. The first man to kill is myself because I am responsible.

We tried to talk a lot, to understand why, learn about what happened from the beginning of the game, that it's difficult to come back when you're 2-0 down after 16 minutes and it should be 3-0 with Mane against Hugo.

To concede three goals in five minutes when you've conceded 15 in 22 games before. It's about learning from it and try and get what the best options will be in future games.

Hugo Lloris and Mauricio Pochettino speak to the media in Belgium

Hugo Lloris

What have the players said since Anfield?

You know, I don't like to speak about what happens in the changing room or the training ground. We are all responsible for this defeat. We were all disappointed in the way we played. The most important thing is to show a good response, all together. Tomorrow is a good opportunity to do it.

Is one trophy this century good enough for Spurs?

It's our responsibility to create a great dynamic for this club. It's a good opportunity for every player in this squad to create history for this club, but for that you need to put in a lot of effort, be committed with the team and your club, and show your abilities and skills all together. We can't win with one or two players. It's about the team, all together.”

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How will you approach the Europa League?

In your mind it has to be like the Champions League. It's still a good competition to win and we're all ambitious. We want to go as far as possible. But, for that, we have to be focused, to switch on our minds and be ready for a fight. Football is always about basics. Look at the Liverpool game, it's not about tactics or technique.

It was more about the spirit and, in a cup game, the spirit is the key. Tomorrow we are aware of the situation. We need to play at 100 per cent because our opponents will be ready to fight and compete against us.

Which do you prefer - the Europa League or FA Cup?

I'm a competitor. Every time I'm involved in a competition I want to win this competition. It's not from today. It's from a long time ago when I started to play football as a kid. Every time I went out on the pitch it's to compete and win the game. There's no difference in all the competitions.

Have the Belgian players told you all about Genk?

You know, it's always special games when you play against a team from your country. So obviously it will be special for them. It's important, as a team, to win the game tomorrow. Because, of course there are two legs, but it's better to get an advantage in the first leg. We expect a tough game. If the players can advise you, of course they will do it.